Mr. Yemane Gebremeskel, Minister of Information, met this morning with Ms. Sandra Macharia, Director of the UN Information Service in East Africa.

During the meeting, Minister Yemane stated that the longstanding defamation against Eritrea has been politically driven and coordinated media campaign by U.S. and European media outlets.

Minister Yemane further noted that the defamation has been beyond normal and presented evidence showing that the negative media coverage of Eritrea is tied to the geopolitical interests of certain well-known countries.

Ms. Sandra Macharia, on her part noted that she had productive discussions with various Eritrean officials. She mentioned that her perception of the country had changed significantly since her visit and praised the professional and insightful information she received from Eritrean youth.

Ms. Nahla Valji, UN Resident Coordinator in Eritrea, also attended the meeting.

The delegation composed of Ms. Louis Haxthausen, Regional Director of UNESCO in East Africa, and Ms. Sandra Macharia, visited the ancient archaeological site of Adulis and the Northern Red Sea Museum on 13 and 14 November. During their visit to Adulis, the delegation received a detailed briefing from experts and coordinators of the project that is being carried out by a joint effort by Eritrean and Italian archaeologists.